Striated Fieldwren

I have posted on this bird before, but it is always a delight to see one of these cryptic little wrens. A recent visit to Reef Island in Westernport Bay re-acquainted me with Calamanthus fuliginosus (‘calamanthus’ = grass-dwelling or pipit-like, ‘fuliginosus’ = abounds with soot – go figure!).

The Striated Fieldwren is a bird of coastal understory habitat. It has pretty limited distribution to southern Victoria and parts of Tasmania and southern NSW.

Striated Fieldwrens can be difficult to see at times. They usually remain well hidden close to the ground in the grasses and salt marshes, seldom far from the shoreline in my experience. Spring is usually the best time to see one, as the males in particular often sing loudly from the tops of the vegetation.

Some references suggest the bird is classed as a vulnerable species due to habitat loss and predation, although both the Commonwealth’s EPBC Act and the Victorian F&FG Act do not have the species listed as threatened – at the moment.

 

Mosquito-orchids

Mosquito-orchids belong to the Acianthus genus (akis = point, needle or barb, and Anthos = flower). There are about four species that grow in Victoria.

The most commonly found ones in this district are the Small Mosquito-orchid (A. pusillus – pusillus = tiny, little, puny)), Large Mosquito-orchid, (A. exsertus – exsertus = protruding, thrust forth) and the Mayfly Orchid (A. caudatus). Pusillus and exsertus can be hard to tell apart sometimes. Small Mosquito-orchids and Large Mosquito-orchids tend to flower through winter. Mayfly Orchids appear late winter to spring. 

Large Mosquito-orchid leaf - upper and lower sides

Both Mosquito-orchids have a heart-shaped basal leaf that is green on top and red-purple underneath. The leaf of the Small Mosquito-orchid is ground-hugging. Large Mosquito-orchid leaves are often about 1 cm above the ground.

Left - Large Mosquito-orchid    Right - Small Mosquito-orchid

The insect-like flowers appear on a stem that varies between 10 to 20cm tall. Large Mosquito-orchids are usually dark and Small Mosquito-orchids mostly are green.

Both species are fairly widespread and Small Mosquito-orchids in particular can appear in large colonies some seasons. Often there might only be a small proportion of plants in flower. Both are pollinated by tiny flies. They both grow in a variety of habitats but seem to prefer gravelly-sandy loams in shady locations of more open forests.

Maroonhood

There are probably over 60 species of greenhood orchids (Pterostylis spp - pterostylis = winged column) in Victoria, and they are nearly all a shade of green. However there are Rustyhoods and Maroonhoods, and maybe some others, that are members of the genus that are not green at all, or at least not all green.

Recently, I wanted to check the progress of the Cobra Greenhood colonies at The Gurdies NCR at Grantville (there are still plenty of flowers) and came across a single Maroonhood, Pterostylis pedunculata (pedunculata = small stalk).

Although described as common and widespread, often in large colonies, it has been some time since I’ve seen a Maroonhood - I’m not out and about as often these days.

The Maroonhood has a reddish-brown tip to the hood (galea). It grows to about 20cm tall in good conditions – generally damp and shady woodlands. There is a small rosette of leaves on the ground at the base of the flowering plant.

Maroonhoods are terrestrial orchids like all the other greenhoods but one day in Bunyip State Park I found one growing in the low fork of a tree. Apparently some are known to grow on the trunks of Tree Ferns.

 

Scarlet Robin

I’m not sure why it has taken so long for me to post about this enchanting bird on this site. The Scarlet Robin gets a mention a couple of times in posts on a sister site – The Friends of Drouin’s Trees – mainly in relation to the conservation of habitat.

Scarlet Robin male - Grantville NCR

Many people include the ‘robin redbreast’ as one of their favourite birds. They probably mean the Scarlet Robin, but we do have several red-breasted robins in Australia. The most common robin redbreast in this district is more likely to be the Flame Robin an equally enchanting but different species. This post is prompted by a recent sighting of a pair of Scarlet Robins at The Gurdies NCR in Grantville.

Scarlet Robin - Grantville NCR

The Scarlet Robin, Petroica boodang, (‘petroica’ means rock-dweller – go figure, and ‘boodang’ is a native name for the bird) is listed as ‘vulnerable’ in NSW but considered secure in Victoria, despite there seeming to be ample anecdotal evidence of significant declines in its populations in this state.

Scarlet Robin male - enchanting and often obliging

Scarlet Robins tend to inhabit drier woodlands and forests with plenty of litter and fallen logs on the ground.

Scarlet Robin female - more subtle, just as endearing

In some localities, the Scarlet Robin seems to be sedentary, and always present from season to season. Mostly though, in this district, the birds disperse to the foothills or higher country for breeding and return, faithfully to their territories, in the lower regions in winter.

Left: Scarlet Robin – black and white upperparts, scarlet chest and belly, BLACK chin. Right: Flame Robin – dark-grey and white upperparts, flame red chest, belly AND chin.

 The Scarlet Robin is usually seen in pairs and not family groups. However pairs will often mix with other small insectivorous species when foraging, using their perch-and-pounce technique.

 

 

Yellow Thornbill

I try not to repeat posts on particular species but a recent encounter with a favourite bird has encouraged me to write again about the Yellow Thornbill. The earlier post was in September 2022.

The Yellow Thornbill, Acanthiza nana (Acanthiza = thorn-bush dweller and nana = diminutive) is certainly diminutive, measuring overall less than 10cm, and once known as the Little Thornbill, but it does not particularly inhabit thorn-bushes. Yellow Thornbills are nearly always found in acacia, casuarina and melaleuca woodlands in preference to eucalypt forest.

It is a sedentary species and anecdotally appears to be very loyal to its territory – the bird is often found in the same patch of woodland, season after season.

Yellow Thornbills are insect-eaters. They glean their prey from the foliage and bark generally in the canopy. They appear to remain strictly arboreal.

The Yellow Thornbill is the most yellow of the thornbills and the sexes are similar. It can often be easily confused with the Striated Thornbill and in some places, the Buff-rumped Thornbill. For a little bird, it has a harsh, clipped two-note call described as 'tid-id', or perhaps 'tiz-tiz' often repeated.

The Yellow Thornbill is an Australian endemic and is found in suitable habitat down the eastern seaboard from Cape York Peninsula to about Adelaide. Although not listed as threatened, many references suggest its numbers are in decline – dramatic loss of insect populations due to climate change, bushfires, insecticides…? 

 

Little Black Cormorant

The green iris is diagnostic. White flecks on the head indicate breeding plumage.

The Little Black Cormorant, Phalacrocorax sulcirostris  (Phalacrocorax = bald raven and sulcirostris = furrowed bill) is mostly found on inland lakes, dams, and rivers, but also is seen on quiet marine estuaries. It is more gregarious than the other two species of cormorants we normally see in this district – the Little Pied Cormorant and the Great Cormorant – and is often seen in small groups.

Little Black Cormorants feed mostly on fish species and will take other aquatic animals also. They have fully webbed feet, and are excellent divers and underwater swimmers.

Little Black Cormorants are nearly all black. The sexes are similar

When flying between water bodies, they often fly in line formations. They have also been observed ‘fishing’ in cooperative raft configurations – herding their prey for easier pickings.

Like our other cormorants, little blacks spend a lot of time ‘drying out’ by perching on a convenient branch, log, fence post, etc., with their wings spread wide.

Oddly, cormorants do not have waterproof plumage, and between feeding forays must dry their feathers

McNeilly Park wetland, Alex Goudie Park, Bellbird Park wetland and similar locations around Drouin are good places to tick this ‘bald raven with a furrowed bill’.

Yellow-faced Honeyeater

This relatively unspectacular and fairly common bird is perhaps too readily taken for granted. The Yellow-faced Honeyeater has an extensive Wikipedia entry with plenty of illuminating facts – “Over 100,000 birds were recorded passing Hastings Point in New South Wales over the course of a single day in May 1965”.

Like most honeyeater species, our ‘Gippsland’ Yellow-faced Honeyeaters come and go a bit as they chase the flowering patterns of many of their favourite native trees and shrubs. There seems to be a bird or two around almost all of the year. Also, like many honeyeaters, nectar is not their only dietary item: pollen, seeds, fruit and insects are commonly eaten. When in flower, the extensive colonies of mistletoe in woodlands in this district will often have Yellow-faced Honeyeaters in attendance.

While a yellow stripe below the eye hardly represents a ‘yellow face’, it is perhaps the defining visual characteristic of this bird. The frequent and cheery call, particularly early in the day, is another diagnostic tool used by bird watchers.

From its scientific name, Caligavis chrysops, the Yellow-faced Honeyeater should be called the Obscure Yellow-eyed Honeyeater: Caligavis = mist or fog (everything written about the bird is obscure!), and chrysops = golden eye.